Russia’s long-range bombers fire cruise missiles against Ukrainian civilian and military infrastructure nearly unimpeded, so Ukraine needs surface-to-air missile systems that can track and destroy cruise missiles, the Ukrainian Air Force's top enlisted leader told Air Force Magazine. Russian TU-160 and TU-135 strategic bombers take ...
Ukraine’s air space has been contested for more than five months, replete with advanced Russian fighter jets and near-universal Russian surface-to-air missile coverage that make penetration by aging Ukrainian Air Force MiG-29s and Su-25s both risky and dangerous. For the duration of that time, Ukrainian ...
Members of Congress took a big step toward granting Ukraine’s wish to defend its territory from Russia with American fighters when the House passed an amendment to train Ukrainian pilots, but hurdles remain to overcome fears of escalation with Russia, Air Force veteran Rep. Chrissy ...
On Capitol Hill and at the Pentagon from June 19 to 25, two Ukrainian pilots described the challenges they face flying outdated, analog MiGs on the front line of a war against sophisticated Russian jets. They were asking for F-16s and the training to fly ...
The weapons the U.S. and NATO have been providing Ukraine are not enough to reverse Russia’s invasion, and the process of providing F-16s from U.S. stocks should begin as soon as possible, analysts said in an AFA Mitchell Institute online seminar. Panelists also said the ...
F-35s in Eastern Europe have been performing some “elegant” intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions as part of the NATO response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the head of U.S. European Command told lawmakers March 30—and he expects the fighter’s presence on the continent to expand ...
Slovakia is prepared to donate its S-300 air defense systems and MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine "immediately" if it can come to an agreement with the U.S. and other NATO partners about replacing the systems with something Western and modern, Slovak defense minister Jaroslav Nad told ...
Russia’s cruise missile attack on the Yavoriv military training facility near the Polish border in western Ukraine on March 13 highlights Ukraine’s need for more air defenses, and the United States and the West can do more to help Ukraine, a Ukrainian defense official told ...
Poland has volunteered to give its 23 MiG-29s to the U.S. immediately, presumably for transfer to Ukraine, in exchange for an opportunity to buy used American aircraft, the Polish minister of foreign affairs said March 8. But the Department of Defense said it doesn't see ...
Although the U.S. has offered to "backfill" any old Russian jets provided to Ukraine by NATO allies and other partners, it won't be a swift process to provide replacement aircraft. The quickest solution would be providing Active-duty or Air National Guard airplanes, but the allies ...
For Aviano Air Base’s 555th Fighter Squadron, Thracian Viper 20 is about more than just training. The multilateral exercise, to which the squadron sent Airmen and six F-16s, boosts “operational capacity and capability," as well as interoperability with Bulgaria, Maj. Rohan Naldrett-Jays, the squadron’s chief ...
Russian private contractors are continuing to build up their presence of fighter jets in Libya, raising concerns about long-term security impacts of this capability and short-term worries about the skills and professionalism of fighter pilots for hire. U.S. Africa Command on June 18 released new ...